What happens to heroes when they do not have to save the world?
by MithrilBerry
Summary: Post Advent Children. The heroes live in Kalm, in a comfortable mansion with enough room, even when everybody is home. But it needs some repairs... It is far enough from Midgar, but not that far either. Tifa opened another 7th Heaven there. Cid, Cloud and Vincent deliver around the world, but not on a regular basis. Romance/Adventure/Pinch of humor
1. Chapter 1

Cid looks at his new do-it-yourself bath with pride. Now that he passes more time in their new head quarter, he kind of began to take care of Tifa and Yuffie like if they were his beloved daughters. Yuffie, who is now more mature since the apocalyptical events of the last years, sometimes laughes at herself. Not so long ago, she would have take advantage of Cid's caretaker side. Now, she just enjoys his enthousiasm. But Tifa feels quite uncomfortable with this side of her older friend... she is used to be the one to take care, not the other way around... And Cid is really aware of that. So he tought lately of a way to take care, without making her feel bad about it... And he realized he could do that just by offering his help to renovate here and there, one room at the time. And his first job is now finished.

\- Ladies! Come here! I hav' sometin for ya!

Yuffie, lying on the couch, is lazily looking at the rare pictures of Cloud that she has in her PHS, sighing in despair when she hears Cid.

\- Better be a good reason old man!, she answers loudly.

\- Come here laziest ninja!, answers Cid.

\- I am not lazy! I am just... thinking!

\- Thinking about stealing materia again!

\- I am far beyond that now, you know that!

Both of them are shouting at each other, their voices hardly lowering as Yuffie is walking towards the bathroom. Tifa is annoyed and amused at the same time. She cannot resist any longer, she has to see what it is about. Cid always calls the others when he has something to share that is important to him... When Tifa arrives, she chuckles at them. Cid is holding back Yuffie. The ninja is trying to enter the bathroom, but Cid does not want to let her pass.

\- Just wait, will ya!

\- Why?

\- Made it for ya both, Yuffie! Jus wait!

The ninja stops, knowing how Cid is sometimes sentimental, even if he does not show it.

\- At last, Tifa!, says an impatient Cid.

The pilot finally opens the door, and both women are very surprised to see an oversized bathtub, with all kinds of pipes strangely interwined around it. But it is kind of aestetic at the same time. And the most impressive is that Cid cleaned all the place after his job. Very thoughtfull.

\- Wow, old man! That is awesome!, says Yuffie. She cannot hide her childish joy.

\- Thank you, Cid. That was completely not necessary, but I cannot wait to try it. Really, I could not have imagine someting like that, and even less to have it here!

Cid is very satisfied, and a little uncomfortable, all of a sudden.

\- Well, ya both deserv'it... Ya work damn hard. Ah, yes! Almost forgot... Shera told me you would love this.

And he gives them a bubble bath bottle. They both smile in surprise.

\- Cid, I am pretty sure I will try it when my day is over, says a grateful Tifa.

\- Ok. Hav'to go. Shera's waitin for me.

\- Do you need any help?, says a curious Yuffie.

\- Na... We will be back in a couple of weeks. Jus'hav to finish packing and say goodbye.

\- Well, I cannot wait for you both to come back for good, says a smiling Tifa.

Cid gives them a clumsy hug before he leaves.

As soon as the airplane takes off, Yuffie screams in high-pitched sounds like crazy, jumping here and there joyfully.

\- We are so lucky Tif!

\- We are, indeed, says a smiling Tifa.

As the ninja calms down, she looks at her best friend more seriously.

\- What about a girl's night, Tif?

\- I don't know...

\- Come on! It's been too long since we talked. I mean, really talk... Please...

And Yuffie pouts until a laughing Tifa succombs to the invitation.

\- I guess I could allow myself a ladies talk.

\- Awesome! I'll go finish in the garden, then. See ya!

And Yuffie leaves, skipping like a child. When she is alone, Tifa does a little happy dance. She really needs this. So she returns to her inventory. She wants the bar to be ready for Barrett's turn.

Both women enter in the bath with delight. The warm water is incredible on their skin, and the lilac scent make them fell like if they were in an enchanting garden. They enjoy this relaxing treat silently, for a long while. They are used to one another, and do not need to fill the silence with empty words. But Yuffie comes back from her reverie, curious about something she thinks she observed lately.

\- Tif?

\- Mmm?

Yuffie hesitates before she finally decides to ask her friend.

Tifa is letting her imagination wandering anywhere, and she is curious because her thoughts are not full of a certain blond young man, for once... In fact, it makes a couple of months now that Cloud deserted her intimate thoughts... even if she is happy when he is around. Her actual daydream is now about an unexpected encounter, a few years ago, in the basement of Shinra Mansion... She is so calm now, the red wine and the bath helping her to really let go, and she remembers how she felt when she first met him. To her surprise, she remembers how she found him handsome and lonely, but was supressing her feelings instantly, afraid that she was kind of cheating on Cloud, even if she really was not...

\- Are you and Cloud together or not?

Tifa suddenly opens her eyes, her wayking dream vanishing with Yuffie's question.

\- Geez Yuffie! I lost it! Says a kind of frustrated Tifa.

Like if Yuffie had discovered what she was thinking about, she blushes.

\- What were you doing, Tif!? I mean... you were not... I mean... touching yourself, were ya!?

\- Of course not! What are you thinking!

And they both start to laugh like crazy, realizing how this situation is unlikely. They finally calm down.

\- Sorry Tif... But you were blushing so much... I felt like I caught you doing something... intimate...

\- Well, I just remembered something I have forgotten. And I really wanted to remember more... But I guess I will have to wait... Or you can just leave.

Seeing confusion in Yuffie's face, Tifa tells quickly :

\- Kidding! Just kidding!

A relieved Yuffie then asks her question again.

\- So, Tif... Are you avoiding the subject? Because I can understand if you don't want to talk about it...

\- What subject?

\- So you don't want to answer my question?

\- What question?

\- Tif! You really don't remember? You have your 'I really don't understand face'... I though my question made you react...

\- Well, your voice kind of woke me up from my daydream... but... what did you say?

Yuffie is now excited like never. Whatever her friend was thinking about, it was more captivating than Cloud. Which is a first... Yuffie is now experiencing a new feeling : hope. So she just repeats the question to confirm her hypothesis.

\- Are you and Cloud together or not?

Tifa now understands why her friend is so surprised.

\- Well... A couple of months ago, it began to be clear for both of us that it was not working. Each time we were... together... if you know what I mean...

Yuffie does a yes sign with her head, with a pinch of jealousy in her heart, but she really cares about Tifa too... It is almost too much feelings at the same time...

\- ... so each time we were... together... we were feeling like if we were cheating on her. And we were missing her at the same time. And something was akward... It is like if being apart of each other for so long, with Aeris between us... it is like if something that could have grow kind of died before it bloomed... And the strange thing is that we feel exactly the same about it. But we still are very close. In fact, I think we never have been this close before. I mean, we belong together, but like friends. Very special friends, with an unbreakable bound, but still... just friends. It is really weird. Now that we know that we could never be together, it is easier to say 'I love you' to one another... probably because we know what kind of love it is now.

They both stay silent for a while, staring at each other, their chin resting on their knees.

\- So... Are you sad about it?

\- Well, I was at first... Any end is kind of sad, anyway. But I guess it is the end of mourning for me. I have enough to feel sorry for myself. Things began to change during the last weeks... I was tired to feel stuck like this.

\- You are not the kind to weep and do nothing for too long...

\- Exactly! I think I am ready for a new start... Enough about me. What about you? Can I finally know about this mysterious man of yours?

It is Yuffie's turn to turn red like a tomato.

\- Well... Maybe it is too soon...

\- Come on Yuf! It makes years that we know each other... And since our first real talk you avoid the subject. I won't tell anyone, I swear!

Yuffie hesitates, but she waited for that moment for so long. It is a need for a young woman to talk about who you love so dearly.

\- Well... don't be mad... but... I love Cloud.

It takes a few minutes for the information to sink into Tifa's mind. At first she is surprised. And then she realizes how it must have been hard for her friend to keep it for herself all those years... And to see all this triangle... and then the strange relationship between herself and Cloud.

\- I am sorry to have been such a burden for you in the last years...

\- No problem! In fact, a part of me was hoping for both of you to be happy together, and another part was hoping for both of you to get tired of each other... I was angry at myself... And I did try to forget my feelings for him, but they just came back, hitting stronger each time... You are not angry at me?

\- Why would I? I know how it is... I can understand why someone would fall in love with him.

They smile at each other warmly.

\- Want a wutaï massage?

\- Yes, it would be perfect.

As Tifa turns around in the bathtub, Yuffie begins to use some of the techniques she knows to help her friend to relax her muscles.

\- Tif, your muscles are really less tensed than usual...

\- I guess I am relaxed and relieved at the same time...

\- Relieved?

\- Yes... To talk to you about me and Cloud, it is like it becomes more... real for me... I mean, it is like it is another chapter of my life that is beginning.

\- I am happy for you. And for me...

Tifa laughs at it. It confirms her that she is just fine with all the situation.

\- Tif?

\- Mmm?

\- What were you thinking about when I startled you?

Tifa stays silent for a while. She even takes the time to turn around and massage Yuffie in return. The ninja knows that her friend is apraising the situation. This must be crunchy. She is better to wait until Tifa is ready to talk about it.

\- Yuf... Do you promise not to laugh or talk about it?

\- I promise! Both of them!

\- Well... I remembered the first time... you were not with us already back then... I remembered how I instantly felt for Vincent.

As she hears it, Yuffie's muscles tensed just a little. But Tifa behaves like if nothing happened. She needs to talk about it anyway.

\- When I saw him, I thought he was handsome. And I felt, I mean I litteraly felt it... his loneliness... And all I wanted was to lose my loneliness in his... to become one togetherness... I felt like he was a magnet to me. But I suppressed this feelings immediately, because I felt like if I was unfaithful to Cloud...

\- Wow, Tif! That is aws...

But Yuffie just remembered that she promised Vinny not to talk about how he feels when Tifa is around. The guy let the info escape only once, because Yuffie asked him why he was so cold all of a sudden with Cloud... and Vincent just told something like he would never do that to Tifa. Like if he was almost talking to himself... But he made her promise not to talk about it. He probably did not want to mess things even more between them at that time. It was a couple of years ago, when Cloud made Tifa cry because he told her the truth when she asked... He was still in love with Aeris... But things changed since, and Tif and Cloud were alternatively together and not together... But Yuffie was right. Something had really change in Tifa's behavior lately. She felt like if her friend was more... free. And this bubble bath talk just confirms it.

\- What were you about to say, Yuf?, says a very curious Tifa.

\- Well... lets say I have big hopes for your dream to come true... but it is between you and me, ok?

\- Ok.

They both look at each other, with a connivance spark in their eyes.

\- Do you think the same?

\- Probably... answers a smiling Tifa.

\- Our men are both single... and unaware of us to fall on them. We help each other?

\- Of course!

They both hug in joy, but let go almost instantly, remembering that they are naked and feeling very awkward about it. Yuffie decides to get out of the bathtub just after. Now wraped in a fluffy towel, she puts some more water in the bathtub, and a bit more of bubble bath.

\- What are you doing?

\- I wish this will help you to go back to your reverie, my dear... says the ninja with a grin.

Tifa splashes her a little with a shy smile. And they laugh together.

\- Better go watch your pictures of Cloud on your PHS, then.

\- How do you know, says an unbelieving ninja.

\- Well, I did not know until now. I was just wondering if you were coming back to your old habits of stealing. I thought you were hiding something when you suddenly close your PHS or skipping quickly the pictures when someone arrived nearby...

\- Send me more pics, will ya?

\- Of course!

\- Tifa... thanks for the talk.

\- It was a real pleasure. You know you are my favorite ninja.

\- And you are my favorite kung fu should do that more often. Like this, we are sure our conversation will stay private.

\- Good idea!

Right after Yuffie left the bathroom, Tifa tries to rememger her first encounter with Vincent. And how she was feeling. But her conversation with Yuffie makes her think about the future instead. If her friend cannot say anything, it is because there is something to know about Vincent. And she takes it like a challenge.


	2. Chapter 2

A couple of days have passed, too slowly for Tifa's taste. Vincent is still on a delivery run. She was tempted to call him, but it would have been too uncharacteristic from her part. Of course, they usually get along very well, both of them needing their own space and paying attention not to pop their respective bubble. But they rarely talk on the PHS. And most of the time, when they talk, they only have short conversations. Short but meaningful nonetheless.

During the last days, Tifa realized how she was stucked with Cloud, in a relationship that was going nowhere. Both of them were stucked. She kept hoping for so long, she wonders why she was holding to the idea of them being happy together... Maybe a childish dream. She lost almost everything from her past. Cloud is kind of the only witness of her before life. The only witness of who she was, and the only one able to mirror her how to stay faithful to her authentic self. But authenticity must not be mixed with immaturity... Back then, in Nibelheim, she dreamed of a heroe rescuing her. And Cloud hold his promess. But now that she is a woman, she knows she does not need a hero anymore. She can fight her own battles. She needs a partner, an equal, a lover. Someone dear to share her life.

It is strange... It was love at first sight for her. She felt so attracted to Vincent when she first saw him. Why did she suppressed all those strong feelings? And how?

Cleaning each glass until it shines in the kitchen of her new 7th Heaven, she has plenty of time to turn and turn again those questions in her mind. Until it hits her. She suppressed her feelings because Cloud needed her. Almost like a child needs his mother. Only he did not have his mother back then. But he had her. And she had him. She needed to feel useful, she needed to take care of him. Like if helping him coming back from his madness could bring back all the town's people... at least symbolically. That was the awkward feeling when they were together... it was not only about Aeris. Being the only survivors of their hometown made them a kind of strange familly. They could have never been together. Cloud was probably seeing her as a sister, or even as a mother figure, in his subconscious. And now that she is aware of it, she understands that she kind of has a brother. Realizing how much she loves Cloud and what he is to her, a couple of tears fall on her cheeks. Tears of sorrow as well as tears of joy. Misunderstood love and suppressed needs. She has to remember how this mix is detrimental to her mental health.

She decides to open the window, needing some fresh air. As she sees the sun, she realizes how long it took her to think, find those well hidden feelings and let them pass... Well, at least her job is now done and the bar is ready for the night to come.

Realizing she still has the time to take a nap under the lilac tree, she steps outside towards the garden. It smells so good, she could stay there forever. Her best friend really has green thumbs. Once she lies on the comfortable grass, it takes only a few minutes for her to fall in a light sleep, her mind full of thoughts about Vincent. These are at first about some memories, her mind bringing her back to their first encounter, apparently trying to make her remember how she felt attracted to him. But under this strong attraction, she could even say this visceral attraction, lied a warning. A warning that was making her afraid... but afraid of what? Like if asking the question was triggering the answer, she sees someone who seems to be Vincent, but different... a kind of monster version of Vincent, but not like when he turns into Galiant Beast during battle. A monstruous version of him close enough to make him disapear. And the monster is now threatening her... so she fights him back, until he holds her in a way she cannot hit him anymore. So the only card she has is asking him for mercy... 'Vincent... it is me... Tif..a... please don't do that... to me...' She can see some inner struggle in the eyes of the looking-like Vincent monster. And her friend seems to recover his sanity, for he encloses his large wings around her in a protective embrace, loosing his grip on her, and softly droping her on the ground, before he flies away from her. She just runs behind him. The cartesian part of the warrior thinks it is kind of stupid to run after something that was a threat seconds ago. But she can only run behind him, yelling at him 'Come back! It does not have to be this way! Vincent!' She suddenly wakes up, gasping, like if she had run for real. It takes a few moments before her breaths comes back to normal, and a few more to realize that someone has covered her with a semi-sheer and embroidered soft fabric. It depicts a beautiful landsape of the Nibleheim Mountains, in various shades of green, turquoise and silver, over a backgroud of deep indigo blue decorated with the smallest dots of shiny semi-precious stones as stars in the night sky. A sudden nostalgia spreads slowly in her heart, comforting her in a strange way. Just like her strange dream. Even if the dream ends on an uncertain note. Who put this beautiful scarf over her?

Yuffie told him that Tifa kind of needs a friend right now. Apparently, Strife dumped her another time... or so the ninja says. She told him to hurry back home to their common mansion in Kalm. He was coming back anyway. He always does. Something was odd about how the wutaï warrior was talking to him. He kind of remembers everything of their short conversation.

\- Come back home soon, Vinny. We need you here.

It annoys him when she calls him this way. But in the same time, it kind of makes him feel like he belongs.

\- Why? Still miss me, ninja?

\- Of course I miss you, dumb ass! I cannot sheer her up, this time. I need back up.

\- Your her best friend, Yuffie...

\- I know, but this time I am helpless... There is something... different, this time, Vinny... I can tell.

\- I am surely known as the best entertainer in town.

\- Thee! Hee! Hee! See! You make me laugh!

\- You are an easy crowd.

At least, she did not see the corner of his mouth begining to rise very subtly for a split second...

\- Well, the others are all on duty or away, so make it quick, Valentine.

How did she know that he already decided to try to help? This ninja begins to read in him too easily... Or maybe he just likes to open up with her? He has to admit she kind of fills his need for a little sister to take care of... Looks like little sisters are always annoying and likeable brats.

Anyway, now that he is in Kalm, he can pay Tifa a visit, only to see for himself if the ninja is right. Opening the door, he searches for her in all the mansion. She is nowhere to be found. He decides to go in his own room, vaguely thinking of changing his clothes. The weather is indeed warmer in Kalm than when he was on his run. Once he has put some lighter pants and long sleeve black shirt, he opens the curtains, and, why not, the window. That is when he sees her, lying on the grass, seemingly taking a nap. He decides to take a look, just in case she is having a bad moment. It is hard to tell from here.

A few moments later, he is next to her. She sleeps, her eyes moving quickly under her eyelids. She kind of looks peacefull. Sleeping beauty. It hits him. He missed her. He always misses her when he leaves. She is kind of his anchor. The first human being to care for him. The first one looking at him and seeing a man and not a monster. The first one he wanted to care about since Lucrecia. The one bringing him back from his darkness. Lucrecia surely saved his life... but it was only his body. Tifa helped him to remember that he has a soul. That he is still human. But she does not know how much. He never wants to be a burden to her. Well, maybe he now has the chance to help her pass this difficult moment.

The flow of his thoughts is interrupted by the sleeping warrior. She becomes agitated all of a sudden. It looks like she is talking in her sleep, and her hand is reaching for some unknow target, but he cannot understand a word of what she is mumbling. He decides to put on her the large scarf he brought back for her, which is a first. While he is placing the fabric over her shoulder, he sees the upset expression on her face. So hard to read in her sleep... She probably tries to convince Cloud to come back, like she did so many times before. He has to go before he thinks too much about Cloud. Even if they are friends, he cannot help but want to punch him each time he hurts Tifa. Walking away, the wind moving his hair all around his head, he hears Tifa whispering in her sleep. 'Vincent'. He silently laughs at himself, a sarcastic voice saying in the back of his mind 'Keep dreaming, you fool'. And the more ironical philosopher part of his mind adds ' Interesting how the wind can change someone's word in something we want to hear so bad. Did not know Cloud could so much sound like Vincent'. Anyway, he has some things to do in town before he can see her tonight, awaken this time, he hopes.


End file.
